Japan has confirmed its second case of monkeypox, with a man in his 30s testing positive in Tokyo, an official said Thursday.
The man, who had traveled abroad, is currently hospitalized but his condition is stable, according to the official of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government.
The new finding came after Japan confirmed its first case of monkeypox Monday, involving a man in his 30s in Tokyo who tested positive. The second patient is not a close contact of the first patient, the official said.
In the first case, the patient traveled to a European country from late June to mid-July where he had close contact with a person infected with monkeypox, the metropolitan government said.
The second patient has symptoms including headache, sore muscles and fatigue. The first patient has similar symptoms and is also in stable condition.
On Monday, government officials held a meeting to discuss measures needed to respond to a possible outbreak of monkeypox in the country, after the World Health Organization on Saturday declared the outbreak of the infectious disease a global health emergency.
Infections have been reported since May outside of Central and West Africa, where the disease is endemic.
Symptoms of the disease, which is spread through close physical contact, include fever, extensive rashes, skin lesions and swollen lymph nodes following an incubation period of five to 21 days.